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Friday, December 19, 2014

Gift guide 2014

It is almost Christmas. The semester is over, the weather has chilled and a thin, decorative layer of 3 inches of fresh snow. Most people have their Christmas gifts by now, and the others will run crazy in the malls this weekend. Last night I perused the Williams Sonoma website for anything that I could still buy for the 20% off coupon I received in the email, and debated to get a Cuisinart Electric Pressure cooker for cooking all those chickpeas and kidney beans in 30 minutes flat without soaking them. But accommodating another huge appliance somewhere made me loose the idea. Then I read the Hater’s Guide to the Williams-Sonoma Guide Christmas Edition, and that finally produced an idea: a shitake growing log!

Here are few other ideas of things that are me-approved (meaning, I own and love them, and no one paid me to talk about them).

Alpaca inserts

I purchased a pair of alpaca inserts back in the Fall at a Maine fall market from a local vendor who has her own Alpaca herd. Once the weather became older and the winter boots came out, I inserted the pair, and could not get over myself of how soft, comfortable, warm and overall cozy I felt all day like my feet were wrapped in their own down blanket. I was looking for another pair for another pair of boots, but all my investigating on typical online outlets (Amazon) showed that they are not really mainstream, and you only get them on Etsy. I ordered another pair at this etsy seller and highly recommend them. Great communication, really good prices ($8.50/insert) and fast shipping. If you want to make any man, woman, or child happy, get them some Alpaca inserts.

Timberland booties

Winter time is not a time of pretty footwear, at least not in snow-rich longitudes such as Maine. Practicality comes before beauty, and boots are often clobbery and manly. Not these! They are Timberland women’s winter boots, and they could not look more feminine while still having all the sturdiness, warmth, snow and ice repellant and safe on ice nature of real winter boots. The Timberland Earthkeeper Glancy go well with skinny jeans, boyfriends jeans and even tights and skirts. They make winter boots look petite and are still practical.

Stonewall kitchen caramel sea salt sauce

Whenever I end up in Camden, I make my way into the Stonewall Kitchen Store. There is a reliable spread of samples and, like on good days in WholeFoods, you can eat your way through the store. Last time I tried something that made me immediately grab a jar --- the Sea Salt Caramel Sauce. This is the perfect combination of buttery, sugary, caramelized heaven with a hunch of salt. Drizzle this over a piece of fudgy chocolate cake or a chocolate cookies will make you remember your most profound sensual experiences of your life.